Highlights of Heidelberg
October 5, 2013 • Europe, Heidelberg, Travel
I’ve been in Germany with guests on a food and wine adventure this past week, and I must say, I’ve discovered a gem of a new place to visit – Heidelberg. Here are the highlights of my experience!
Henkel knives – you will see them everywhere for sale and this very large sales display shows you how proud they are of this brand.
The gate leading to the old bridge across the Nekkar is stunning – and I never expected to see the onions domes on statues, bridges, and churches here, but they are gorgeous.
Despite a cool fall feel in the air in Heidelberg, the flower boxes are overflowing with flowers. We also noticed that most of the window boxes are planted with very symmetrical arrangements, which I loved!
Right on the main pedestrian street in Heidelberg (the longest in Europe), you will find an interesting shop of all sorts of liquors – lemon and ginger, walnut cognac, etc. – which make great gifts to take home for friends.
We were lucky to have this view of the castle from the top floor window of our hotel.
But if you don’t have a hotel view, all you need to do is to walk over the Nekkar via the old bridge and you will have a hat view of the castle…
…as well as the town and the gate to the bridge.
One thing you will see all over Germany are windows full of pastries – I can’t eat that many sweets, but my German colleague manages to eat pies and cakes for every meal!
In the center of the old town is the very old and pretty Hotel Zum Ritter.
Our group had a casual dinner at Spreisel our first night in Heidelberg, where we enjoyed many local specialties (more on that in the next post).
Our hotel was the perfect blend of location (along the river with great views) and a short one block walk to the heart of the old city. Villa Marstall is reasonably priced and they provide wonderful service.
Our tour guide told us a great bit of history about the Catholic Church and the Lutherans, and you’ll still see symbols around the city that show the struggle between the two groups.
Despite being a busy tourist city, Heidelberg has some lovely courtyards inside that are quiet and serene.
If you come to Heidelberg, you will want to visit the castle, and I recommend a guide (ours was great and he is actually booked as a guide for Prince Charles next summer!). Our guide recommended we take the train up to the castle.
I love this photo of the castle – just a single wall remaining set against the blue sky.
Like many castles, there is a wide moat around it – and we learned that it was in the moat that they practiced hunting. Kind of like shooting fish in a barrel, shooting moose in a moat!
This lovely arch was a gift from the Prince Elect to his wife on their 19th anniversary – and it was built overnight as a surprise for her.
Can you imagine being around when this portion of the turret fell off!?
Inside the castle courtyard, the architecture is intact…and beautiful.
Including the sundial on the upper wall.
Inside you will find giant wine barrels – a reminder of how much wine was required for their large family and staff.
Up on the castle grounds you see some of the best views of the old town.
After our castle tour we needed to just sit (and drink some wine), and you see flowers everywhere when you sit outside.
Our last night dinner was at the lovely Backmulde – but you’ll need to wait for the next post to hear all about the food and wine!
Comments
2 Comments • Comments Feed
Kirsten | My Kitchen in the Rockies says:
Hi Michele, I have a new motto: “A slice of cake a day keeps the doctor away.” I am living proof that it works. I even lost 3 pounds while eating all the sweets I could on this trip. 🙂
October 22, 2013 at 12:04 pm
Pam says:
Your photos and captions are wonderful and provide a beautiful overview of Heidelberg – I enjoyed the tour!
November 7, 2013 at 6:14 pm